Eleanor
'''Eleanor' is a character of Rule of Rose and is a high-ranking member of the Red Crayon Aristocrat Club. She is often seen with a cage holding her red bird. Eleanor is known as the Cold Princess, and is given the rank of Countess in the Red Crayon Aristocracy. She is one of the three Aristocrats in the Refined Class including Diana and Meg, with Diana ranking higher than her and Meg, ranking lower. Personality Eleanor is an aloof and introverted girl who never shows her true feelings to anyone, making her seem unfriendly, distant, and hard to understand. No one really knows what's on her mind. She is often lost in a world of her own and ignores other people. However, she still attends meetings for the Aristocrat Club, and still participates in the other children's games. Eleanor also openly supports and takes part in the Aristocrat Club punishments towards the other children. This is shown when she cheers both to Amanda and Jennifer when punishing one another on two separate occasions and puts an insect in the Onion Bag while Jennifer was inside it. Eleanor's fascination with birds stems from her wish to "sprout wings like a bird and fly away to wherever she pleased." It is possible that she believed her pet bird would take her to a happy world named Forever Land, where she could escape the troubles of normal life in the Rose Garden Orphanage and live in everlasting happiness. This belief was shortly ended after her pet bird was killed, as it showed that "everlasting happiness is a joke." Biography It is unknown when Eleanor exactly arrived at the orphanage, but it is obvious that she was there before Jennifer's arrival. When Jennifer arrived at the orphanage, Eleanor neither became her friend nor her enemy and rarely spoke to her. Eleanor's storybook is "The Bird of Happiness". In July 1930, the monthly gift for the Aristocrat Club was to be a "Bird of Happiness". Since Eleanor was the only person in the orphanage to own a pet bird, Meg and Diana murdered it and wrapped it up in her dress. Jennifer managed to find it, but Eleanor entered the room to see her holding the bird corpse straight afterwards. Jennifer quickly claims that she was not the one who killed the bird, but instead of getting angry or upset, Eleanor merely took the bird, put it in its cage carried it to the club door and put it into the Gift Box with no particular reaction, countering Meg and Diana's bet of whether Eleanor would cry or become angry should she find her little bird. From then on, Eleanor always carried around her pet bird's cage, empty. When Wendy issued a Rule of Rose to the other orphans not to speak to Jennifer to make her feel isolated, Eleanor obliged by ignoring Jennifer all the time. Wendy's final Rule of Rose to murder Jennifer's pet dog Brown was also partially obliged by Eleanor along with Diana. After Jennifer violently lashes out at Wendy and shows her hatred towards the other orphans, Eleanor, along with the other orphans, chooses to elect Jennifer as their new Princess of the Red Rose, but shortly afterwards is murdered by Gregory M. Wilson. Etymology The English name Eleanor comes from the Old French form of the Provençal name Aliénor. The first known bearer of the name was Eleanor of Aquitaine. She was named after her mother, Aénor de Châtellerault, and called Aliénor (from Alia-Aenor, which means other-Aenor in Occitan). It became "Eléanor" in the northern Langue d'oïl and in English. Therefore the meaning of the name is sometimes given as "The Other." In Greek, the meaning of the name was "compassion, pity." In Arabic, it means "God is my light." Compared to the other children, Eleanor can be seen as the "Other Child," as in the one who is not like the others. The "compassion" element to the name clashes with her cold, indifferent attitude to everyone else and most of the events of the story. Quotes *''"Yes, she is a pain..."'' *''"She was writing you a love letter... Oh... I see..."'' *''"...We had to do it. Besides, there's no such thing as mermaids."'' *''"...They're such beautiful and pure creatures."'' *''"There you are."'' *''"...The red bird. Have you found what you're looking for? Something dear to you...?"'' *''"Greetings, Princess Jennifer. From now on, you'll be our new princess."'' *''"Please lead us."﻿'' Trivia *Where Eleanor obtained her red bird from is unknown. She could have owned it when she still lived with her family and brought it to the orphanage when she went there, or it could have been an orphanage pet which she became very fond of that became more of her responsibility than anyone else's over time. *It can be speculated that the red bird was always a doll, or Eleanor got a doll as a replacement for her dead pet. *As shown in the introduction movie, Eleanor is left-handed. *Eleanor exhibits many characteristics of Autism Spectrum Disorder. For example, her attachment to her bird/birdcage as a comfort object, limited eye contact and facial expression, calculated movements, limited social interaction and verbal skills, and preference to indulge in a fantasy world in order to cope with her situation. She seems able to function to the point of having social relationships with the other children, unlike Thomas, who seems to be on a different area of the autism spectrum entirely. *Each time Eleanor is shown curtsying, she turns her face away from the person she is supposed to be addressing. * In "The Bird of Happiness", Eleanor spends the entire chapter in her underdress as her red bird has been wrapped in her dress, presumably by Meg and Diana. How Meg and Diana got hold of Eleanor's dress is never mentioned. After the chapter Eleanor is shown wearing her dress again as she was before. * In "The Funeral" chapter, Eleanor can be found on the balcony with her empty cage. If Jennifer talks to her, she merely ignores her and continues to stare at the sky. * Eleanor's black, sharp bob is known as a 'Lulu' from the stagename of the actress Louise Brooks, who made it a popular style at the end of the 1920s. Gallery Eleanor_cage.png|Eleanor with her cage. EleanorCurtsy.gif|Eleanor's curtsy. 755310-930042_20060919_092.jpg|Eleanor curtsying in the club room. 755311-930042_20060919_093.jpg|Eleanor looking away. 755287-930042 20060919 069.jpg|Eleanor eavesdropping in the bathroom. 755325-930042 20060919 107.jpg|Eleanor, Diana and Meg drawing together. Attic.gif|Eleanor, Diana and Meg hammering something in a bag. 755290-930042 20060919 072.jpg|Eleanor, Diana and Meg sealing a coffin. Eleanor.png|Eleanor in the bird room. EleanorCage.png|Eleanor playing with her cage. EleanorRoom.png|Eleanor before finding her dead bird. Eleanor_corpse.png|Eleanor donating her bird's corpse. EleanorGoat.png|Eleanor in the "Goat Sisters" chapter. EleanorCurt.png|Eleanor curtsys to Jennifer. Sally.png|Eleanor, Diana and Sally. 755240-930042_20060919_022.jpg|Eleanor and Diana. DianaMegEleanor.jpg|Eleanor in the "Goat Sisters" chapter. 755243-930042 20060919 025.jpg|Eleanor, Diana and Meg. 930042 20060919 screen028.jpg|Eleanor during the Onion Bag punishment. EleanorBalcony.png|Eleanor on the balcony. JenniferAristocrats.png|Jennifer standing up to the Aristocrats. GirlsEnd1.png|Eleanor curtsying. GirlsEnd2.png|Eleanor sitting. EleanorCourtyard.png|Eleanor in the courtyard. Rorwall01a.png|Wallpaper. Rorwall02a.png|Wallpaper. Characters.jpg|Wallpaper. AristocratAd.png|Wallpaper. OldPhoto.png|Eleanor in the Old Photo. Cast.png|Eleanor in the Old Photo (labeled). Category:Characters Category:Aristocrat Club Members Category:Children Category:Female Characters